England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Swineshead St Mary

The Parish

The parish of Swineshead lies in southern Lincolnshire roughly 7 miles west of the market town & port of Boston. Swineshead sits on the former route of the A17 road which connects King's Lynn with Sleaford, that route now following a bypass to its south. Much has changed in the landscape of the parish since the earliest times, Swineshead has been a market town, itself, and until drainage efforts once bordered The Wash and was a small port, the sea now being some 8 miles away to the east. Today's Swineshead is a long substantial linear village with most properties lining the former route of the A17 which once passes directly through the village which runs for over two miles from Drayton in the south through to North End in the north. The parish also included the chapelry of Chapel Hill which was licensed for marriages and will have its own page within this project. Swineshead first came to importance with the siting of a Cistercian monastery here in 1134, this later came to fame due to the unfortunate King John, in crossing the Fen and losing his carriages and baggage, sought sanctuary here. Whilst the drainage of the Fens caused the silting of the river which once reached Swineshead it brought benefits in the for  of rich alluvial soils which today make the area one of the most intensively agricultural areas of the land. High value table vegetables dominate but there also fields of staples such as cereals and root crops. The flat land is characterised by hedge-less vast fields intersected by drainage channels. These drainage channels all feed into the South Forty Foot Drain which takes water eastwards to Boston and the River Wytham and thence to the North Sea. All of the land for miles around is below 10 metres above sea-level with some places below sea level itself, the landscape being billiard-table flat for many miles. Swineshead parish, including the detached acreage of Chapel Hill chapelry, covered over 6,700 acres and would have supported a population of close to 2,100 parishioners. Whilst Swineshead is not mentioned in Domesday Book the manor of Steyning fell within the area of the parish and was recorded, shared between Count Alan of Brittany and Robert de Vessey it recorded just 2 ploughs, some meadows, a fishery and no fewer than 8 salthouses.

The Church

St Mary's church sits on the southern side of the former route of the A17 at the main crossroads within the village. This is a church which shows an almost complete single build begun in the early 14th century, in the Decorated style, and completed by the end of that century, in the Perpendicular. This is seen to good effect in the western tower, the church's main stand-out feature and a landmark for man miles in this flat terrain as it stands 160 feet in height. The lower stages are Decorated the upper ones Perpendicular. The southern aisle, arcades and southern porch are also Decorated  as is the clerestory to the nave. It is the eastern end, the chancel, which was the main Perpendicular contribution along with the northern aisle and its roofing. The chancel was, however, rebuilt in a restoration of 1847 confusing some of its dating detail. A further and more substantial restoration was completed in 1869 which lowered the floor of the nave which was also re-seated and its gallery removed. A third restoration of 1878 rebuilt the southern aisle and porch whilst a final restoration of 1925 made further changes. Along the former main road all is no parking so side-streets such as Abbey Road opposite must be utilised. The main entrance stands at the crossroads where South Street meets Church Lane. It must be said that the churchyard has many trees and these markedly restrict the views available of the church, having said that there are a few viewpoints to be sought by the photographer which require some scouting, as ever with such a tall tower landscape imagery encompassing the whole church is the most difficult.